Along a 984 foot wall in the center of Angkor Thom is the Elephant Terrace. On either side of a staircase is a stone sculpture of a three-headed elephant. Their trunks are pulling up lotuses. In Buddhism, this flower symbolizes purity and spiritual awakening. Jayavarman VII was one of the first kings to embrace Mahayana Buddhism. Prior emperors were believers of the Hindu religion. In Hinduism, the lotus represents beauty, prosperity and eternity.
